Namibia

On the trail of German colonialists

date of entry 21/08/1989

mileage 27,561

capital Windhoek

area 824.116 km²

population 2.303.315

GDP 12.300 M. US-Dollar

official language English

German visitors to Namibia have a good chance of being addressed in German by the locals – as Gunther and Christine Holtorf experienced while buying supplies at a butcher’s. The country, which now takes its name from the Namib desert, was known as German South-West Africa for about 30 years and was a colony of the then German Empire. Half-timbered houses and German street signs can still be found there, and German is one of the official languages.

Im Twyfelfontein valley in the northwest the Holtorfs admired the famous Stone Age rock engravings, including of animals

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Namibia was a German colony from 1884 to 1915 and called German South-West Africa

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The traces of German colonial rule are visible and even audible to this day. German is one of the country’s official languages.

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Namibia has been a democratic country since 1990. A fact that – unlike in other African countries – even the military appreciates, as the badge on this soldier’s uniform shows.

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While on the move Christine and Gunther Holtorf encountered locals in traditional dress, such as these Herero women ...

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... or these members of the Himba tribe, who inspected Otto with curiosity

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Namibia owes its name to the Namib Desert, which extends over vast areas of the country

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At 80 million years, the Namib is the oldest desert in the world

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Christine and Gunther Holtorf drove through the desert landscape with Otto three times

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Gunther Holtorf enjoyed relaxing amid the dunes now and again ...

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... but was happy that there were enough shady places in the country as well

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There was always close contact with Namibia’s wildlife

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Waterholes provided a good opportunity for catching the different fauna species ...